The Price to be Paid
by MomofPhoenix
Summary: There is a price to be paid, and it is their hearts. Babe/Morelli friendly. There will be an HEA if it goes any further. I have changed the rating from T to M due to some of the subjects coming forth in chapter 12.
1. Chapter 1

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

This is a one shot with the potential for more. All depends on the reviews.

The Price to be Paid

He sat there in the darkness of her room, centering himself. He was sitting in what he thought of as his chair, thinking, contemplating everything he has every told her. He had lied when he said there was no price between them. There was and they both knew it. The price was their hearts, and the hearts of others who loved them. He knew it would be better for both of them if he walked away for good, but he couldn't do that. He stood up, gently brushed her curls away, kissed her forehead and walked away. The price was greater than anyone knew. His heart broke each time they walked away from each other, he had seen the hurt in her eyes too. This was for the best.

The morning came, well late morning, but still early for her. She was exhausted, mentally and emotionally. She and Joe sat down last night and had a talk. A long overdue grown up talk. He wanted more than she would ever be able to give him, and he wanted her to change. She needed to come up with a plan. She and Joe were done, and Ranger only wanted her body. She was tired of paying the price of her heart when it came to him. She called his cell phone, they needed to talk. He either needed to step up or step away. She couldn't be a yo-yo anymore. She got his voice mail.

"Hey, it's me. I was hoping to talk to you sometime today. Ummm... I understand if you're busy. Give me a call if you can. If not I'll see you when I see you. Later."

She hung up the phone, and sighed. She dialed Tank. Something told her Ranger had left without a goodbye.

"Yo." Tank greeted, in the Rangeman standard.

"I'm guessing he's gone."

"Yeah Bomber, he left at 0300. Unknown return. Can I do something for you?"

Her mind made up, she knew it was time. She needed to grow up, discover herself. She was leaving Trenton.

"Not really, can you give him a message from me? For when he returns."

"Sure Steph, but you could give it to him yourself when he gets back. "

"Not this time Tank. Tell him that no matter what he says there is a price, and I can't keep paying it. I'm leaving Trenton this weekend. I may come back for vists, but nothing more than that ever again. I'm tired of not being good enough in one way or another for everyone, so I am taking charge of my life. My first step, is getting away from it, and starting over. Tank I will let you know where I go, but only if you promise to not tell anyone. I just can't live like this any longer."

"Steph, what brought this on? No one thinks you're not good enough. Where would you get that idea from?"

"Let's examine my life, shall we? First we have my Mother, who is constantly telling me what a screw up I am. We have the TPD always betting on what I will fuck up next. Then we have Joe, who wants me to be something I am not, something I can never be. He and I talked last night, a real adult conversation, we both know it's not going anywhere, and we're done for good, because I'm not good enough for him. Last but not least we have Ranger, I'm good enough for his bed, but nothing else. He made that clear when he slept with me and sent me back to Joe. I need to find someone, and somewhere I can just be me, and be happy. My heart can't keep paying Ranger's price, Tank, I just can't. I am in Love with him, and I won't live like this anymore. "

"ok Steph. Just please let me know where you go." Tank whispered

As they hung up the phone, Tank sat there wondering how Ranger could do that to her. He understood her reasons for leaving, she wasn't running away, but running towards her future, one that didn't include those that hurt her. Maybe he could help would need a job, a place to live. He had a place in Georgia, about an hour outside of Atlanta that was sitting empty. UGA was nearby, maybe he could help her go back to school. He called her back, and told her his ideas. She jumped at the chance. It was time to let go.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

well from all of the wonderful reviews I have received on this story, asking me to continue I decided that I will. I will tell you that the HEA has NOT been decided as of yet. The town that I will be using in this story does indeed exist, and yes it is an hour from Atlanta, and about twenty minutes from Athens where UGA is located

The Price to be Paid

She began the 12 hour trip from Trenton Nj, to Commerce Ga. She and Tank had it all set up within a week, She would be moving into his home for the foreseeable future and attend classes at UGA. He is paying for all of It, no matter how much she tried to argue with him over it in the end he won. He told her that he loved the idea that he could help her reach for the stars, he even provided a car. The only thing she would have to pay for would be her necessities, like food clothes, gas, phone and car insurance. He had set her up with a job, she would be filing, and answering phones part time at a photographer's studio.

She took a break in South Carolina, while there she had dinner, and spoke with her waitress, turns out she was only about 2 hours aay from her new home. She took a deep breath, and said a quick prayer heaven wards.

At the same time, in parts unknown, Ranger was worried. Something wasn't right, it wasn't with this final mission. It felt as though a piece of his heart, the largest part, had been ripped out of his chest. He knew in that moment, that when he got home this time his life would never be the same. He wants Stephanie in his life, in every way possible. Now he needed to figure out how to do that, and pray she hadn't moved on, or married the damn Cop. Deep inside though, he felt the shift. There was a change, and he hoped it wasn't anything bad. He was in an area where he could check in with Tank, he picked up his SAT phone and made the call.

"Yo!" Tank barked into the phone.

"Report!" he replied.

"All is well."

"Stephanie, how is she? Something feels off."

"I can't give you any intel at this time. She is no longer in Trenton. More will be told upon your return. Do you have an ETA yet?"

"One week."

He hung up. She left, where had she gone? Had he done something wrong? He hadn't said anything to her. He just went and watched her before he left, she centered him. He hadn't told her he was leaving, maybe that was it. Maybe she was upset. Did the cop do something? If he hurt her, there would be no place on earth he could hide. What he didn't realize was she was tired of paying the price too, and was trying to move on.

She pulled up to the gate at what was to be her home, she keyed in the code, and pulled up to the front door. She grabbed her overnight bag and made her way inside. Just as she turned off the alarm her phone rang.

"Little girl, I am glad you made it safely" Tank started when she answered, "I just had a call, he's safe and asked about you. I only told him that you were no longer in Trenton, his ETA is one week. Are you sure you don't want him to know where you are?"

"I'm sure Tank. I need to work on me. I can't be entertainment for him, or anyone else any longer. I need to find my happy."

"I understand. I won't say a word. I will be there in three weeks for my vacation, you go ahead and take the master suite. I'll use one of the guest rooms when I stay. You have never been entertainment for me, you know that right?"

"I know, and I am so grateful for all you've done. I never realized how you've supported me from behind the scenes until now. Thank you. I don't know what I would have done without your help."

"Anything for you Stephanie, I would do anything for you. I am so sorry that you don't see what the guys and I see. I don't know where Rangers head is where you are concerned, but I am glad you are taking charge of your life now. Don't let anyone bully you into changing who you are, or what you want."

"Thank you." She whispered.

They said goodbye, and hung up the phone. She began exploring her new home, it was so beautiful. There were pictures of Tank and the guys hanging in the hallway, there was even one of her and Tank laughing together. She made her way up to the master suite, and found more pictures, but one caught her eye. It was Ranger, and a beautiful woman looking into each others eyes. You could see the love between them. She was a tall willowy blonde, with green eyes that danced. It hit her square in the chest, this is who he loves, not me she thought. She felt like a fool. It was time to give up that particular dream, he would never look at her that way. She picked up the phone, and knew she would get his voicemail, but she needed to do this now.

"I understand now Ranger. I know now that you could never love me, and I understand that now. I am starting my life over, and all I ask is that you leave me be. I need to find my happy. I wish you all the happiness in the world. I Love You, but I know that when that love isn't reciprocated there is no hope. I want you to be happy. Goodbye Ranger."

She was letting him go.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

The Price to be Paid

One week later found Stephanie beginning her classes at UGA, she had decided to major in Forensics and Psychology. She knew she wanted to stay in the criminal justice field, but also knew she wanted to do something more than hauling people back to jail. She made the decision to major in both, thinking that it would be good to have options. Plus having both degrees would ensure she would be able to find a better paying job when the time was right. She had always been good at piecing together clues, so once was all said and done she hoped to find a job as a profiler. It felt likea good fit to her.

The second day of classes she found that she fit in well there, and was so excited. She met another Woman in her class, Tonya, who lived right down the road from her. They discussed starting a study group together. What Stephanie didn't know was that all HELL was about to break loose in Trenton. Ranger had made it home.

"Report!" Ranger barked at the group in front of him.

"Security end, we only had two minor alarms in the past three weeks. We have brought in 3 new accounts, and lost one. All FTA's are current and up to date. No medical emergencies, other than Ram coming down with appendicitis. He will be back into field rotation in two weeks."Lester informed him.

"Anyone want to tell me what's going on with Stephanie, and where she may be?"

Tank spoke up, "She is no longer in Trenton, and has no plans on returning to live here. I am guessing you haven't checked your voice mails yet. I know she was planning on leaving you one. Check that, then come see me, and we will talk about it in private. Also tomorrow morning you have an appointment with me on the mats 0500 hours." Everyone felt the tension in the room at that point. Ranger didn't question him, only nodded his head in acknowledgement

"Dismissed. "

Once everyone left the room he went to check his voice mails, when he heard the two from Stephanie he sat there stunned. She really was gone, and she thought he didn't love her. True he had never really said the words without adding a qualifier, but he tried to show her in every way he could. What did he do wrong? There was another message, this time it was from Joe Morelli.

"Manoso, Morelli here. Listen, just so you know she loves you. We parted ways like adults. If you hurt her, then entire TPD will be gunning for you, and I will be leading the charge. I know she will never tell you how she feels, because she won't do the bed buddy thing, and she told me, the night of our conversation, that is all you want her for. I've seen how you look at her, and I know you want more. Don't fuck this up anymore than it already is, go after her. Tell her you want her forever, give yourself and her a chance to be happy. I love her, ya know, and I just want her happy. Anyway. ...bye."

He sat there as a dozen more messages played, not hearing any of them, because none of them were her. He needed to find her, but he needed to talk to someone else before he could do that. He went to find Tank two hours later.

"Do you at least know where she is? I need to know she's safe. I am planning on looking for her, but I need to talk to someone else first. I need to clear that up before I can go after her." He said to Tank.

"I know where she is, and yes she is safe. I will not break her trust in telling you. You played games with her, and broke her. She is trying to put herself back together, and then be stronger than she was before. You will be answering to me for it on the mats tomorrow. She is the sister I never had, and I will do everything in my power to help her, and if that includes keeping your heartless ass away from her I will. Firend or not, she's family, and family trumps friends. Remember that." Tank turned on his heel and stormed away from a very confused Ranger.

The next morning at 0500 on the dot, Tank and Ranger met on the mats. You could feel the fury rolling off of him. Ranger was actually beginning to feel nervous. He had never seen his friend this worked up, not even in combat. They began circling each other.

"Line Item in your entertainment buget, huh? You piece of shit!" Tank landed a kidney shot.

"You kind of love comes with a condom, and not a ring. Really asswipe!" This one was punctuated by a right hook.

"I love you in my own way!" Left hook.

"Someday! What the hell is that one shithead?!" Jab to the gut

"Not willing to pay the price! What price would that be?" Kick to the head.

"I'm guessing you never told her about Aubrey, and I'm guessing you aren't ever gonna give up this juvenile on off crap you have with Aubrey. At least Stephanie grew up, and let go of the unhealthy patterns in her life!" The whole time Tank was pounding on him. Bobby and Lester finally came in and put it to an end. Tank walked away without a scratch, and Ranger had a broken nose, broken wrist, bruises everywhere, and would probably be pissing blood for a week. When he got up to 7 he realized that everything Tank had said was true. He had been playing with her emotions for years, she had been paying a large price for all the crap he had done. It was time for him to grow up, so he made a call.

Stephanie was at work that morning when a call came in from a client requsting to have her portrait done. She said she needed it for work, and Stephanie quickly scheduled her in for Saturday morning. She finished off her work, and at noon left for her next class. She had a sense of foreboding take over again, and her phone rang. It was Tank.

"Hey Big Guy! I can't talk long, I'm getting ready to head into class, What's up?" She inquired.

"He got back yesterday. I wanted to let you know I met him on the mats this morning, and that he plans on searching for you. Don't worry about it though, we have you hidden in plane site, right under his nose. He won't find you. I need you to promise me that if you decide you want to see him you'll tell me, and I'll arrange for it to happen. I know why you're doing this, and I couldn't be more proud of you Steph. You're my little sister, and I will help you in any way I can. If you never want to see him again, just promise me you'll call him, and let him know that, and at least tell him to him, not his voice mail ok sis?"

"Ok, Tank. I promise, bye." She quickly hung up her phone and got into class with tears welling up in her eyes. She wiped them away, and decided to focus on there here and now. Here and now was Psch 101.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

Pleas note that I am taking liberties with this story, after all it is fiction. UGA does not offer degrees in psychology, or forensics. It does, however, offer the tools you need to obtain them, similar to pre-law, or pre-med. Now, for this story they will.

The Price to be Paid

He took a flight to Atlanta, he needed to talk to Aubrey. It was time, and while her never cheated on her while they were together, in their off times he touched, kissed , and one time spent the greatest night of his life with Stephanie. Aubrey was comfortable, she was who he was familiar with. Tank was right, it was time to grow up. She would always have a place in his heart, but he didn't love her the way he loved Stephanie. It was time to end whatever it was they had. He would stay at Rangeman Miami, not with her this time, and never again. He got off the plane, and picked up his rental car. He was in front of her door at 5 pm on Friday, she should be home from work.

"Carlos! I wasn't expecting you this weekend! How long can you stay? I missed you so much! " She pulled him in for a hug. He hugged her back.

"I'm here for the weekend, but I will be staying at my office. I came here, because it is time we sat down and talked, really talk like grown adults."

Aubrey had a feeling this was coming, and honestly she was grateful it was. She loved him, but it would never be enough. The amount of time he spent out of the country, or with his business was so detrimental to their relationship, and the fact that he could be killed in the span of a heartbeat, was to much for her.

They went inside and sat down at her kitchen table, and he decided to share everything with her, and the reasons for doing it.

"Aubrey, please don't think that I don't love you, because I do. I just, well, I have come to discover that it will never be enough. How many times have we split up because of my job, or because I go to serve our country? We can't keep doing this, it's not fair to each other. We both deserve better than this."

"You're right, it's time to face the facts. As much as I Love you, I need to find someone who can make me happy, and so do you. Although from what Lester has told me, there is a certain blue eyed, curly haired brunette that you should have been with for the last few years. Be happy Carlos, go back to Trenton, and tell her how you feel. Please."

"Les, is a dead man."

"No, it came out one night while we went together, and he was down here visiting his sister. I had been at her house, and overheard him telling her about Stephanie, and how he wished you would get your head out of your ass where she is concerned. He didn't know I was there."

"Aubrey, it may already be to late. She packed up, and left. Tank helped her."

"I'm guessing that is the reason for the broken and beaten look you are currently sporting. "

"Tank was a little pissed at me, and decided to knock some sense into me. All while telling me to grow up." Ranger chuckled over it now, but the man had been right. He had been completely justified in beating him to a bloody pulp.

They talked for another hour, hugged and he went back to Rangeman. The next day as he was going over some paperwork, Stephanie was at the photography studio working a full day.

Stephanie was working at the reception desk, when a woman came in. She looked vaguely familiar. She was dressed in a beautiful grey suit. She was here for a professional picture for UGA, she taught business administration part time. They got to talking while she waited for her appointment.

"I have a business degree, that I never use, I am back in school now."

"What are you majoring in?" The woman asked.

"Forensics, and Psychology. I am hoping to become a profiler. I'm Stephanie by the way."

"Please call me Aubrey, this Ms. Dmitry stuff is for the birds. I hear an accent in your voice, where are you from?"

"Trenton NJ, I just moved here."

Aubrey took in that statement, and knew that this beautiful woman was who Carlos loved. Oh, this was going to be good.

"Hey, since you just moved here, why don't I take you out to the outlets this afternoon? I know the studio closes at 2, we can hit the outlets, then grab dinner."

"I'd like that."

At 2 pm on the nose, she and Aubrey were on their way to the outlets. Steph only got a few things, including a new zebra stripped bag from COACH. They made their way to a restaurant to sit and eat.

"I had so much fun today! I really needed it." Aubrey told her.

"I did too. I came down here to make a better life for myself, and to get away from stupid me, and I think shopping therapy was just the distraction I needed to forget for a little. "

"Well, mine was because the man I had been seeing on and off for the last 6 years finally decided it was time to grow up. We had a long talk last night, and found that as much as we love each other it will never be enough. I don't like his job, it's too dangerous, and honestly he shouldn't have to change who he is for me. Plus, there is a woman that he really loves, who accepts him for who he is. Now don't take that wrong, I know he would never cheat on me while we were technically together, but in our off phases, ehh." Aubrey shrugged her shoulders.

"Huh, that sounds like the male version of me. My ex and I were together on and off for the last 4 years, and you just perfectly described my role in the relationship, he didn't like my job, we fought constantly, on/off. I really loved someone else. While we were together I never slept with the guy I really loved, but when we weren't together...There was one night, one wonderful night we spent together. He then told me to fix it with my ex. I recently found out why. He loves someone else, so I needed to step back and let him be happy, and find mine."

They spoke for a little while, just idle chit chat, before calling it a night. As Stephanie crawled into bed that night she realized who Aubrey was. She bolted upright, she was the woman in the picture.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

I want to thank everyone for the reviews so far, they mean a lot to me. I originally intended for this to be a one shot, but I had enough interest to continue. I am flying by the seat of my pants on this one. I have very vague plans in my head for it, and each chapter is bringing new surprises for me as well.

On that note there is an error in chapter 4 that I have not been able to edit and fix, it is supposed to read Rangeman Atlanta, not Rangeman Miami.

The Price to be Paid

She sat there in bed thinking about what Aubrey had said. "He loves someone else" kept running through her head. Did Aubrey know who she was? Did Ranger already know where she is? Wait, he was in a relationship for 6 years and never once told her! Now she was pissed, how dare he! She had always been up front about Morelli. God! Had he made her the other woman?! That asshole! How dare he do that!

She fumed, she was to mad to sleep now. She spent the night pacing around the house, contemplating everything he had said, all the touches, the night they spent together. He used her, now she really felt like a whore. That is what he made her feel like. The sun was starting to come up, and she made a call to Trenton. There were a couple of people she needed to talk to before she could confront him.

"Yo!" came the Rangeman standard answer.

"You need to get Bobby and Lester in on this call, too. I have a few questions that need answered," she told the person on the other end.

"Give me five, and call back," He replied.

She hung up, got another cup of coffee, and called back.

"Ok, Little Girl, we're all here. what do you need?" Tank asked.

"Please understand that I am not upset with you guys at all, but was anyone ever going to tell me about Aubrey? " The silence was deafening. Yup, they all knew about her. Stephanie sighed and continued on.

"I saw the picture, Tank, and I met her yesterday. She seems like a really nice person. I only pieced the puzzle together last night. I just need to know if he really did that, if he really made me the other woman. Honestly, right now I am feeling like I was made into a whore for his fun. I can't and won't live like this any longer. I left because I needed to grow up, and I've been slapped in the face."

"Oh, Beautiful, don't ever think of yourself that way. Aubrey was his Morelli, that's the only way I can really explain it. She was in his life for a very long time. They were on and off so much, it made you and Joe look stable," Lester told her.

"Bomber, I don't know what happened. I am sorry that I, for one, never stepped up to the plate and told you anything. I think you and Ranger should have a talk. Sit down and really talk," Bobby told her.

"Have you guys ever tried to actually talk to the man? Unless we were talking about business or the one time he made a freaking deal with me, I only ever hear one word. He doesn't talk." Tank was being very quiet during this all, "Tank, do you care to enlightened me any?"

"What do you mean by a deal, Little Girl?" She sucked in a deep breath; she hadn't meant to say anything about that.

"Nothing Tank. Just ignore I said that. It doesn't matter. I was dumb enough, and went along with it."

"No Stephanie. I need to understand what you meant. He always said there was no price between the two of you. I am guessing that this deal is when you realized there was a price. Now tell us."

"Fine, but this goes no further than you three, and there will not be any kind of retaliation. Do you guys agree?"

"Yes," all three answered.

"I was having trouble with a skip, and in order to have Ranger help me, he wanted something in return for this one. The deal was if I needed him, I had to sleep with him. A few months went by, and I thought he had forgotten about it. I was wrong. We finally slept together, and the next day he crushed me under his shoe. He left as fast as he could, then later told me to fix it with Morelli. I did the only thing I could, and tried to fix it with Morelli. Then I grew up. My heart was to far involved with Ranger, I needed to get away from it all and start over. I need to find me. Now, I feel as though I've been used. I feel bad for Aubrey, too. I never kept things with Joe a secret, but obviously I wasn't important enough to know about Aubrey from him. He made me the one thing I swore I would never be...the other woman."

Tank spoke up, "Steph, he loves you more than anything. You two really need to talk. Let me know when you're ready to do that." You could feel the tension rolling off of him, through the phone connection. This was not good.

Ranger was sitting in his office when his phone rang.

"Yo!"

"You are a fucking bastard! I cannot even begin to comprehend how we are related. The only reason I haven't hopped a plane and come down there is because I promised not to," Lester said.

"Want to tell me what I did now?"

"You, made a deal with her, then sent her back to Morelli. You are the reason we don't have our light in Trenton any longer. She got tired of paying your damn price! She managed to find out about Aubrey, you ass, and now she says she feels like a whore. How dare you do that to her! I am ashamed of you.n It's no wonder she feels like a whore, you treated her like one." Lester's voice became deadly cold by the end of his rant.

"I never meant to do that. I was never with her when Aubrey and I were together. I never meant to hurt her. I love her Lester."

"You need to find her, and talk to her, though I think she is done with your ass after this. You know she was right. She was always open about her and Morelli, but you fucked with her head, and hid Aubrey. " Les hung up on him.

Ranger sat in his office, thinking. Lester was right. He was absolutely right. He didn't think he could fix this one, but he knew he needed to try. He at least needed to save their friendship. Even if she wouldn't let him in her life any other way, he needed her friendship. He began his search for her.

A/N Thank you, Maggie for your help!

Any mistakes are all mine.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

The Price to be Paid

Ranger knew that Stephanie had found out about Aubrey. That didn't tell him where she was. One of the guys could have easily told her about Aubrey. It was time to run a check on her name. Although, if Tank was helping her, he may not find her. He booted up his computer and ran her name.

He only needed twenty minutes before he figured out where she was. She was in Georgia, Commerce to be specific. She was attending college at UGA, and it looked as though she was staying at Tank's private home. Now that he had the information, he wasn't sure what to do with it. Does he leave her alone, and just watch her from a distance, or does he go to her, and tell her everything? He was at a loss.

Stephanie was spending her day getting to know the area she lived in. She was falling in love with the small town. As she walked around the downtown area, she began to think about her past with men. She had been hurt, in one way or another by most of the men in her life.

Her Dad, with his indifference was one. He never stood up for her. No matter how many hurtful things her Mom said to her. He just kept moving along in his own world.

Her ex husband was always putting her down, nothing she did was good enough. Then, to add fuel to the fire, he had an affair with Joyce Barnhardt, and she caught them on her dinning room table, the only thing in the entire house she even liked.

Joe, had been hurting her since she was six years old. As adults it became worse. Whenever someone was after her, or her car blew up, he was there to belittle her. She was pretty sure he had cheated on her numerous times as well, but she couldn't prove it. Even though they had separated on good terms with an adult discussion, the pain of the past still lingered.

Ranger? Well... Ranger had the power to destroy her. The sad part was she had almost let him. He told her that his life doesn't lend itself to relationships. Apparently that was a lie. He could have relationships, just not with her. He told her "someday, " but that wasn't happening. That dream had died the day she saw that picture. She wasn't in a place where she could talk to him right now. She had to get past the heartache that was so raw it was still bleeding. She was in love with him, but she didn't think she could ever forgive this. Aubrey seemed like such a nice person, and she felt like she betrayed Aubrey. She felt used, and alone.

She was lost in her thoughts, when she ran smack dab into a very tall stranger's chest. She could feel the rumble of laughter in his chest as he reached out to keep her from falling on her butt.

"Sorry about that," she muttered.

"That's ok, Darlin'" the handsome gentleman said. "My name's Jason. You must be new around here. I know just about everyone in town, and I never saw you here before."

"Stephanie," she put her hand out to shake his, " I just moved here."

"Welcome to Commerce, Stephanie. Would you like to walk with me to get a cup of coffee? My treat, as a way to say welcome."

She hesitated, but then answered, "Yes, I'd like that. I don't really know anyone around here, and it's always good to have a friend."

They walked over to DQ, the closest place to walk to that was opened on Sundays. She had discovered that almost everything was closed here on Sundays.

"So, Stephanie, what brought you to our little town?"

"I needed to grow up."

They talked for awhile longer, exchanged numbers and parted ways. She had really enjoyed his company, and wanted to see him again. They were both single, consenting adults, and there was an attraction there.

Ranger wasn't sure who to turn to for advice. It's not like he could turn to one of the guys. Aubrey was definitely out, as was his family. Then he knew just who to call.

"Hello?" the other end answered.

"Hey, man it's me," Ranger replied, "Got a few to talk?"

"Sure thing, I just got in. What's going on?"

"You remember me telling you about that woman I met in Trenton?"

"Yea, why? Did you screw it up?"

"I never got my shit together, and now that I have, it may be to late. She now knows about Aubrey. I'm not really sure how to proceed. Aubrey and I said our goodbyes, but Babe doesn't want anything to do with me right now. She left Trenton. I know where she is, I just don't know if it would be right to force her to talk to me by showing up at her doorstep."

"Asshole," his friend muttered. " Honestly, Ranger, let her alone. Make sure that you are where you need to be first. You may find that all you really want is her friendship. I think you need to earn that first. Let her come to you."

"Thanks man, I'll think about it."

Ranger made his decision. He would get a message to her, letting her know that when she was ready to talk, he would be there. He would take whatever steps necessary to at least save their friendship. He wrote her a letter, and would give it to Tank in Trenton. Neither one of them need to know that he was aware of where she was. He got ready to head home. His flight was in a few hours.

Stephanie took a few minutes to think back over her day. She met a new person, who turned out to be very nice. She had come to the conclusion that no matter what, there were only a few people she could count on. She made a vow to herself then and there, that she will begin to reach out more. She needed to have friends who cared. Eventually she would talk to Ranger. She was going to take a little bit of time to calm down first.

A/N Thank you again Maggie!


	7. Chapter 7

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

A Price to be Paid

Almost a week after meeting Aubrey and Jason, Stephanie was checking the mail. She found a letter addressed to her with the Haywood return address. Inside she found two letters, the first one was from Tank.

Dear Steph,

Ranger asked me to forward this letter to you. I told him that I would. I did not tell him where you are. I am asking you to take a moment and read it. Please. No matter what you decide to do, remember that I am your friend.

Love,

Your brother, Tank

She sat down hard on the sofa. Can she do this? Can her heart take another hit? She takes a deep breath and decides to risk it. There isn't much that he can say to her in this letter that she doesn't already know.

Dear Stephanie,

I want you to know that I am sorry. There are so many things that I need to apologize for, including not telling you about Aubrey.

I met her when we were in high school in Miami. We were friends. When I opened Rangeman Atlanta, I ran into her again, and we began dating. Our relationship was like yours with Morelli. She hated my job, and she hated when I left for missions. We fought over them constantly. Recently we both came to the conclusion that it wasn't right for either of us. She also realized I loved someone else, you.

I want you to know that the night we were together was the best night of my life, and like you and Joe, we were in an off phase. Any time I kissed you or held you close, we weren't together. Physically you weren't the other woman, but emotionally, my heart always has, and always will belong to you.

I would like to get our friendship back on track. I would also like to have a relationship with you, but only if you choose to. You don't have to tell me where you are. I will abide by your wishes and leave you alone. When you are ready you may call me night or day, and I will drop everything to talk with you.

This last mission I was on fulfilled my contract with the government, and I have decided not to resign it. There are younger men and women who can do this job as well as I did, if not better. I won't chance going back, and my reflexes are begining to slow. I would get myself, or a member of my team killed.

I want you to know, whatever you decide, I will follow through with your wishes. I won't push towards what I want, you need to follow your heart. I only want you to be happy.

Please take your time and know that I will be waiting for you.

Love,

Carlos.

She sat there and the tears were falling down her cheeks. She knew in her heart that she loved him, but she needed to get her head on straight. She would wait a little before she called him. She at least needed his friendship, she didn't know if they would ever be anything more. His letter brought so much to the surface.

Ranger was at his desk in Trenton when Lester knocked on his door and came in.

"You don't even know how much it is taking me to keep from hitting you right now. I promised Beautiful that I wouldn't retaliate. That is the only thing that is keeping me from handing you your ass. She didn't want to tell us anything at all, but Tank insisted. I wish she hadn't, because I hate knowing that you hurt her that way. I hate knowing that you made her feel like the one thing she always swore she would never be. We use to talk all the time, and she told me how much she always prided herself on how she could always say the one thing she had never been called by her Mother was a whore like Joyce. She always told me how your life may not lend itself to relationships, but at least your moral code was a good one. She held you in such a high position, only to find out that you are not any better than her ex husband. I thought you were a better person than that." Lester turned and stalked away.

Ranger sat there in stunned silence. How was he supposed to answer that? He couldn't. He looked up at his computer just as an email came through. The familiar address had him tense for a moment. He took a deep breath and opened it.

Ranger,

I received your letter today. Please, try to understand, that right now I need space. I don't know when, but we will talk. I need to let go of some of the hurt before we can do that.

Our friendship is something I have always valued. I don't want to lose that, as for anything more than that I'm not sure. I never hid my relationship with Joe from you, or anyone else, but you felt it was important to hide Aubrey from me. I hope that someday we can get our friendship back on track.

I originally left because I was tired of feeling like I wasn't good enough for anyone. I needed to grow up, and let myself be me. I haven't liked what I've found out about myself. I was exactly what everyone was saying, but the worst part was that I was made to feel like something I always swore I would never be.

I am back in school now, and once I graduate I plan on trying to find a job as a profiler. I want to stand on my own for once. I need to stand on my own. I will never be able to repay you for all the help you have given to me over the years, and certainly not all the help Tank has given me over the last few weeks. As much as I would rather not have anyone's approval, I still crave yours. I can only hope that I am making you proud by standing on my own.

I love you, and don't think that will ever change. I do, however, think some time apart will be good for both of us. I will call as soon as I am ready to talk in person. I hope that once I do you will come here and we can talk face to face. I have no plans on returning to Trenton to live. That may change, I just don't know when.

Love,

Stephanie

She loves him! Thank God, there is hope! He will wait for her as long as she needs. He began to write his reply.

A/N Thank you Maggie!


	8. Chapter 8

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

The Price to be Paid

She refused to look at her email for the 24hrs. It was a way for her to distance herself, and get a handle on her emotions. She had school and work to keep her busy. Plus Jason had called and asked her to go out to dinner later this week. This is what she needs. She is moving forward with her life, while learning to come to grips with the baggage she carries within her heart.

Her phone rang, and when she answered she felt her hackles rise.

"Stephanie Michelle Plum! What is this nonsense that you have moved away from Trenton?! You need to get your butt back here now! No one else's daughter runs away from their life! Why did you break poor Joseph's heart? He was your last chance!" Steph listened to her mother rant on. She patiently wait for the woman on the other end to wind down before she spoke.

"Mom, listen to yourself. Do you honestly hear what you are saying? This is my life to live, not yours, and not the Burgs. Joe and I sat down and had a long talk. We realized that we don't want the same things out of life. I left to make a better life for myself, and the sad thing is that it took you this long to even notice I was gone. Probably, you wouldn't have even noticed I was gone, if someone there hadn't called you. What does that say about you Mom? I am going to school to make a better life for myself. Unless, you can support me in that I don't want to hear from you. Do you think you can do that?"

"Listen to myself?! You are the most selfish person ever! You don't care what people are saying about me! What do you mean you and Joe don't want the same things in life?! You are from the the Burg, you get married, stay at home, and take care of your husband and children! There is no other way! This IS THE RIGHT WAY! Why would you go back to school? No man will want you now! They will think you believe you are too good for them! I raised you better than this! You think that you are better than everyone, well I've got news for you young lady, you are NOTHING!"

"Do you know the sad part about all of this Mom? Dad and Grandma were both standing right there when I told you about Joe and me, and my move. This just goes to show that you really don't care about anything but yourself, and the stupid Burg. Dad and Grandma have called me at least every other day, and even though I informed you about everything, you chose to ignore me. I am done with your head games. Please do not call me ever. When I am ready I will contact you. You don't even know how much damage you've caused to our family because of your domineering ways. I pray that one day you will see it, and that it's not too late. Otherwise you will be completely alone for the rest of your life."

She hung up the phone and sighed. She was startled when it rang again. She looked at the caller I D and smiled.

"Hello Jason," she said.

"Hi ya, Darlin'! Are we still on for dinner tomorrow? "

"Of course! I can't wait."

"What is your address, and I'll pick you up around 5pm."

She rattled off the address, and heard him suck in a deep breath.

"What's wrong," she asked.

"You live with Tank?"

"Tank is a very good friend of mine, and offered me a place to stay, and is helping me with college. Wait..what?! How do you know Tank?"

"Darlin' I'm friends with the core team at Rangeman, and help out occasionally at the Atlanta office. We served together. Hold on a minute, are you Little Girl, aka Bomber, and Beautiful?"

" That would be me," she sighed. This is so not what she needed.

"Oh, do I have stories to tell you about the guys! You will be laughing so hard, you'll pee yourself! I can't wait for dinner tomorrow night now! I really can't wait to tell you about Lester, a bomb and a time certain Humvee exploding!"

"Now you have my attention! I can't wait to hear that one! All the times that man has teased me about my car karma...geeze!"

They spoke for another hour before hanging up. She realized that she felt lighter than she had in a very long time. This was good for her, she was starting to feel like herself again. One more week and Tank would be here for his vacation, and she knew he would see the change in her. She looked at the time and noticed she needed to get to work.

Ranger was becoming impatient waiting for Stephanie to reply to his email, but he knew that he couldn't push her to answer him, or he would push her away again. So, he sought out Tank.

"Hey Rangeman. What can I do for you?"

"Thank you for forwarding that letter. I heard from her, and I hope to hear from her again. I won't push her for anything. If all she wants is friendship, than I am willing to stay in that role only. I just want her to be happy."

"She's getting there man. Who knows, she may get her spark back. She is doing what she needs to do for her, just keep that in mind, man. I think the road she is taking will lead her back to you. There may be bumps in the road, but she will come back. Keep the faith, man."

Around dinner time he called it a day and went up to his apartment. He would wait until 10 to check his email one last time for the night. He grabbed his dinner and settled himself on the couch. He popped in Ghostbusters; it made him feel closer to her, and right now he needed that connection. Just as the Stay-Puff man was about to explode, his cell rang.

"Yo," he answered.

"Ranger, it's Jason."

"Hey man what's up. I just talked to you the other day, and thank you for the advice by the way."

"I just wanted to let you know that I am going out to dinner with a curly haired brunette tomorrow night. I believe you call her Babe. This is just a friendly dinner, but is there anything you want me to let her know?"

"Nah, I'd rather tell her myself. Take care of her for me. How did you know it was her?"

"I played connect the dots man."

Stephanie got back from work. She steadied herself and looked at her email. There was a reply from Ranger.

Babe,

I only want you to be happy. No matter where you are, or who you are with. I pray every night that it will be with me, but if it is not I will accept that.

I am so proud of you. You are taking your life back from all of us and making it into what you want.

I am so sorry that I made you feel like you weren't good enough. The problem is in me. I am not good enough for you. The moment I met, you I could picture a future with you, children with you, marrying you. I want that so much with you. I also knew how screwed up I am, and my lifestyle sucks. I ran back to Aubrey all the time, because well, all of my arguments with her confirmed that I wasn't good enough for you.

The bad thing was that I hurt you in the process. I never wanted to do that. I pray that one day you can forgive me, and we can find our someday. I never wanted you to pay the price for any of this. We have both been paying, and seem to keep paying it.

You always have had, and always will have my heart. Please keep in mind that I love you, and always will. When you are ready to call, you can call any time day or night, and I will answer.

Love,

Carlos

She sat there and stared at the screen. How was she supposed to reply to that.

Carlos,

I think the next conversation we have will need to be in person. Tank will be here in a week and maybe you could come down with him.

Tank has been a big help to me, and I am staying at his home in Commerce, Georgia. I need to talk to a couple of people before you do come down here, if you chose to do so. Their lives are just as affected by all of this as ours.

I do love you. I am just so afraid of being hurt, or used. Maybe if we can sit down and talk face to face,we can figure it out. I just don't know.

I will tell you upfront, that I have met Aubrey. She came into my work for professional portraits. We had dinner together, and when I got back to Tanks that night I made the connection. I plan on speaking with her and Morelli. I think you should do the same. The lines need to be clean and clear. No more of the gray area stuff. I can't and I won't have that ever again. That almost destroyed me.

Love always,

Stephanie

She sent it off, and received a reply quickly.

Babe,

You are absolutely right. I will speak with them as well. I will be there next week. I love you.

Forever yours,

Carlos

She signed off and went to bed for the night.

A/N Thank you Maggie!


	9. Chapter 9

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

It looks like this story has hijacked me. I will update A Secret Between Them asap.

The Price to be Paid

After her classes were over for the day Stephanie finished up her assignments, and made a phone call. She had time to make that call before she had to get ready for dinner with Jason. She dialed the familiar New Jersey exchange.

"Morelli."

" Joe, it's me."

"Steph, are you okay? What's wrong? Are you hurt? Where are you?"

"Joe, I'm fine. I just wanted to talk to you about a few things. First though, I need to tell you I'm sorry. I never realized how much I was hurting you with all the back and forth crap."

"Steph, I was just as responsible for that. I did and said so many things that I wish I never had. The filter in my brain seems to have gone missing. I was starting to turn into my Father, and when we actually sat down and talked, I had to step back and look at myself. Honestly, I didn't like what I saw. You deserve better than that. I am getting therapy now, and it's helping me deal with my past. I don't want to be the person I was becoming. "

"I wanted to let you know that Ranger is coming to see me next week, I'm not sure where it will take us, but we need to get our friendship back on track. I'm not coming back to Trenton for at least 18 months, I need to finish my degrees. Nothing is going to change that. I'm doing this for me. My Mom called and reamed me out over all of this. I am not letting anyone walk all over me any longer. "

"I am so proud of you. You are standing up for yourself. Do not let anyone get you down. I know you love Manoso, just take time for you first. I think he needs to do the same. I do love you, it's just not enough for us to be together, you were right about that."

"I love you too, Joe. You're going to make someone a very happy woman one day. I can't wait to see it. As for Ranger and I, there are things that I can't even tell you about, but I'm not sure if it will go beyond friendship. There is hurt there that we both need to get past. This will take so much from both of us just to get our friendship back."

"You'll get there."

They spoke for a few more minutes before she needed to get ready for dinner with Jason. They were going to one of the chain restaurants, so she was just wearing jeans, and a black scoop neck tee. She threw on two coats of mascara, and teased her hair. Just as she was finishing up there was a buzz from the gate.

She let Jason in. He pulled up to the front door as she came outside. He helped her into the car.

"You ready, Darlin'?" Jason asked.

"I sure am. I can't wait to hear these stories!"

They made the ten minute drive to the restaurant, and were seated quickly.

"So, I promised you the story about Lester and the Humvee. We were at Ft. Benning near the beginning of our training. This particular day we were working on explosives, and how to handle them. Santos was supposed to disarm a bomb successfully. Well he got the device off the the shell vehicle we were using, and our CO had his Humvee parked not too far away with the windows down. Once he got the device off, he panicked because he couldn't remember how to disarm it. So, in true Santos style he threw it, and it landed right in our CO's vehicle then blew! We all stood there in shock, and our CO turned bright red and began stuttering. Santos yelled out, 'It wasn't my fault!' which had us laughing even harder."

Stephanie was laughing so hard that tears were rolling down her face. He kept telling her different stories about all of the guys, including Ranger. She was having a wonderful time, and didn't want the evening to end. Around 10 pm he was dropping her off at Tank's door.

She decided to sit down and check her email before she went to bed. There was one from Ranger.

Babe,

I just wanted to let you know that we will be arriving Saturday morning around 8 am. I am hoping we can go out to breakfast and have our talk then.

Yours,

Carlos.

Short, sweet and to the point. She was glad he wasn't pushing her. If he did that right now she wouldn't speak with him. She would freeze up, and not be able to talk to him. She was glad he recognized that.

She sent him a quick reply, letting him know that was fine. Then sent of an email to Lester.

Lester,

At least my bad car karma is not from bombs that I've thrown! A little bird just told me about you and a certain Humvee? Do you have anything to tell me? Hmmm? I will remember this. Lol!

Your little sis,

Steph

She sent it off, and started to get ready for bed, when her phone rang.

"Yo," she answered.

"Beautiful, who the hell told you about that?! I can't believe it! Why would they do that to me?! It wasn't my fault!"

"Does the name Jason ring a bell?"

"Well heck, how did you meet Tiger? I thought he was in Georgia."

"That's where I'm at. I am staying at Tank's place until I finish school. I ran into him, literally, on Sunday. He had some interesting stories for me."

"I'm sure he did."

They kept the conversation going for a little while longer before they hung up.

Ranger had just picked up his cell phone when it rang.

"Yo," he said tersely. It had been a long day and he was exhausted.

"Carlos, if you don't get your act together with her, I am throwing my hat into the ring. Stephanie is a wonderful woman. We had a great time tonight," Jason told him.

"I'm trying. I think I need to regain her friendship first. She is upset with me, and she has every right to be. I only hope that it's not too late," Ranger sighed.

"I don't think it's too late. Every time I said your name, her eyes would light up. There was a sparkle there, a light that looked like it had been missing for a long time. I think you're right in taking it slow. She loves you man, and needs to process all of the things she has been dealt in the past few years. Have faith, it will all work out."

"I hope so man, I hope so."

As Ranger went to bed that night he said a little prayer that she would be safe, and that they could have their someday. He had a long emotionally charged day, between talking to Joe, then his conversation with Aubrey, he was spent. He drifted off to sleep with ease.

A/N Thank you Maggie! Your red, yellow, and occasionally blue highlighter has been a huge help!


	10. Chapter 10

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

The Price to be Paid

The next day, Stephanie made it to her classes barely in time. It felt like she was being rushed from the moment she woke up. She'd had a very restless night, there was so much on her mind. She needed to talk to Aubrey. What Aubrey had said to her at dinner that night was weighing heavily on her mind. She needed to speak to her.

Stephanie's classes ended at noon that day, and as soon as her last class was over she made the call to Aubrey. They made arrangements to meet for a late lunch. An hour later they were being seated in the diner.

"Hey, Steph!" Aubrey greeted her.

"Thanks for meeting with me. I wanted to talk to you, and this wouldn't have been a conversation to have over the phone," Steph said.

"I am going to take a wild guess, and assume it has to do with a phone call I received from Carlos yesterday. "

Steph just looked at her in shock. Aubrey knows who she is. She quickly composed herself took a deep breath, and began with what she needed to say.

"I feel as though I owe you an apology. I wasn't aware of you and Carlos being together. If I had been, I would have backed off. I told you about Joe and me, and well, while I was with him I fell in love with Carlos. Right now I'm not sure what will be happening between us, but we are at least working on getting our friendship back on track. Somewhere in the last year we managed to lose sight of that. He has told me that he wants more with me, but I just can't trust him with my heart right now. I also want to finish my degrees, and just be me for awhile."

"You have nothing to apologize to me for. Carlos and I were toxic, I hated his job and the missions he ran. I also know that his moral code would never have allowed him to cheat on me. We were off more than we were on in the last few years. I had a feeling he had met someone, but I never had the courage to just end things. He was comfortable for me. When we spoke yesterday, he apologized for not growing up and ending things with me sooner. He had fallen in love with you, and I was basically a distraction. Our time together was filled with so much anger, so much fighting that I think that both of us didn't feel like we were worthy of letting ourselves really be loved. He used me as an example, that most women wouldn't want to deal with his baggage. What he hadn't counted on was you. I don't think any of the guys from Rangeman counted on you. You are a force of nature, you swept in and threw them all off balance. They needed that; they needed to know that there are people out there who can accept them, and the things they had to do to protect our freedoms, without any conditions. They needed you, still need you."

Stephanie sat back and let what she said sink in. Did they really need her? She knew that she needed them. Aubrey broke through her thoughts.

"When Carlos and I spoke yesterday, he told me how he felt you centered him, and that he would be willing to wait for you no matter how long it took. Just remember that, as you take this time for yourself, he will be waiting on the other side."

They finished up their lunch, and for the first time in a long time, Stephanie felt the need to assume her thinking position. She resisted it, she needed to get her school work done. She also needed to mentally prepare herself for Ranger and Tank's arrival.

Ranger was in the gym working out, he was frustrated. He knew he needed to give her time and space. He was willing to do that, but it hurt him that he was the reason it was needed. The phone call with Morelli affected him more than the call with Aubrey. He and Aubrey had already said their goodbyes, that was just a confirmation of it. Joe had given him more of a gift. Joe told him about how he had been jealous of him and how he could support her in ways that Joe never could. He was upset that Ranger could help her fly, and with the way he felt about life, he couldn't encourage her to be herself. Joe told him that he needed to make some changes. Stephanie was making them, and why should she be the only one?

Once he was done in the gym he went up to 7 and got ready for the day. He looked around his apartment and remembered the times she had stayed with him. That was the only time it ever felt like home. He realized, in that moment, she was his home. He sat down hard at the thought. He had to make some changes. He had to learn how to open up to her, even Batman needed someone he could tell things to.

While he was in his office, Tank walked in.

"Ranger, we need to be ready by 4 am to catch the flight into Athens. Once we get there we will drive into Commerce. I understand that you have a breakfast commitment. You hurt her again, and you will meet me, Lester, Bobby, and Tiger on the mats. Then we will make sure you are never anywhere near her again. Little Girl is growing up, and she needs to fly. You need to either let her in, or let her go."

"Understood."

Tank walked away after that. Ranger wanted to make sure that she had everything she needed, but he would ask her. Anything he could give her, it would be hers. First he had to talk to her, open up about himself.

The day seemed to drag on, and they got a lead on a high dollar skip. Cal, Hal, Ram, Vince and Bobby were sent out to check it out. Within the hour they had a phone call, the info was confirmed, they would be taking him down in the next 15 minutes. The guys had their radios on an open channel so they could monitor the whole thing. Something went wrong, and the skip got a lucky swipe in with a knife. Vince ended up with 18 stitches in his arm. The skip may or may not have actually tripped and hit his head on the curb causing his concussion.

They had twelve hours until the flight. This was turning into a very long day.

A/N Thank you again Maggie!

Also Margaret and Amanda, your input and encouragement has helped me get past a few moments of writers block.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

This chapter is longer than most I have written. If it is too long please let me know when you review, and I will try to keep them to the size I normally have them.

The Price to be Paid

On the flight all the way to Georgia, Ranger felt nervous. The questions running through his head, had him fighting the urge to run. Stephanie had been accused of running away from things, in all honesty he did too. He put on his blank face, and pushed away all emotions. He may not physically run from what he doesn't like, but if something affects him, emotionally he shuts down. Right now, he was fighting that shut down.

When they touched down in Athens, he had better control over his facade, but the nerves were showing clearly to those who knew him, and Tank knew him well.

"Calm down. Unless you do something stupid you'll be fine," Tank said, as he slapped him on the back.

He just nodded at Tank, and continued to pick up his belongs from the carousel. He stood up and steeled himself for what may lie ahead of him. Today will be a defining moment in his life, and it could be either good or bad. There was a car waiting there for them; Tank had one of his friends drop his truck off so it would be ready for their use. The twenty minute drive into Commerce felt like days.

When they pulled through the gate, he looked up and saw the front door opening, and the most beautiful sight in the world met his eyes. He immediately felt his world right itself again, and his lips twitched into his almost smile. He was home. No matter what happens after today, their friendship would grow strong, and she would always be home to him.

Stephanie watched the monitor as they came in the gate. She took a deep breath, and opened the front door as Tank and Ranger pulled up. She was ready to face the day head on. As she watched them pull their belongings out of the back of the truck, she felt a bit of peace run through her. When Ranger looked up at her and gave that almost smile, she knew why. They were going to be okay, no matter how things turned out.

She walked over to Tank first, and wrapped her arms around the big guy as far as she could get them.

"Welcome home!" she said, then kissed his cheek. She looked at Ranger and walked over to him with open arms.

"It's good to see you. Let's get you guys settled in, then we can go get breakfast and talk. I was able to get the day off, and my next assignment is almost finished, so I can work on that tomorrow. Just let me know when you're ready to go." She hugged him, and walked into the house.

For the next half hour, Stephanie did everything she could to settle her nerves. She knew this conversation had to happen. She also needed to impress upon him the importance of her finishing her degree. She wasn't going to let him or anyone else walk all over her any longer. This was her life, and she needed to live it her way.

"Babe? Ready to roll?" Ranger asked, causing her to jump. He chuckled, "You need to be more aware of your surroundings, Babe."

"Yea, yea, I know. Let's go."

He looked at her, smiled, and tugged on one of her curls. They walked out to her Escape, and Ranger raised an eyebrow in question at the hybrid SUV.

"Tank helped me get it. Once I'm done with school, and am working full time, I am paying him back for the car. He set up a fund for me to go back to school. He says it's like a scholarship, and I'm not allowed to pay him back for my education. I wouldn't budge on the car though. Too much bad car karma."

Ranger just looked at her in shock, and asked, "How is school going?"

They got into the SUV and began their short drive before she answered.

"I love school. My classes are harder than I anticipated, but I'm up for the challenge. I am struggling with the biology course, but so far have been able to keep my gpa at 3.45."

"Proud of you, Babe."

They pulled into the cafe, and were seated quickly. They both ordered a cup of coffee and a glass of water. Once they had placed their orders, they sat back, both feeling a little awkward and unsure as to how to begin the conversation they both knew they needed to have.

"I'm not sure where to even begin with all of this," Stephanie started.

"Why don't we start with the catalyst for you to leaving Trenton. Then we can go from there," Ranger said.

"Joe and I sat down to talk, really talk about what we both wanted out of life. We came to the conclusion that no matter how hard we tried, our lives were never going to mesh. He was turning into his Father, and I was a raving bitch. We weren't good enough for each other; as a matter of fact we were very bad for each other. That night when I got home, I sat down and made a list. I also decided that I needed to sit down and talk with you. I couldn't keep being your yo-yo. I mean I was good enough for your bed, but nothing else, you made that very clear. My mother...God my Mother! I was never good enough for her. I also know that no matter what I do, I never will be. I needed to get away for me. Tank offered to help, and after a few arguments we came to an agreement. When I got here, I saw the picture of you and Aubrey together. That moment sat me back, and shook me to my core. I could see every emotion on your face, every ounce of feeling you had for her. My heart shattered in that moment. I felt like you were trying to make me your side piece; that I was the other woman. Yes, I kept going back to Joe, but you sent me there. Once again I wasn't good enough for anything but a fuck, a body to be used. I don't know why you didn't tell me about Aubrey, and I am not going to pretend that it didn't hurt. I do miss my friendship with you, and would like to work on getting that back. Maybe one day we can trust each other again."

Ranger did the unexpected and sighed. Just as he was about to start talking, the waitress arrived with their food. The small interruption was enough of a distraction for him to gather his thoughts before he spoke. He didn't want to say the wrong things, so he weighed his options carefully.

"You were never a side piece. The day I met you at the diner you blew me away. You have been a force of nature from day one. I have watched you grow as a BEA, and fell for you more everyday. Honestly, it scared the hell out of me. I never told you about Aubrey because I didn't think it was important. We had a relationship very similar to yours and Joe's. I told you I didn't do relationships because whatever she and I had was so screwed up. It made you and Morelli look stable. I figured that because we fought so much over my job, and my government work, that no one could accept me as I am.

Hell, my own daughter barely knows me. Aubrey and I had a long talk, actually we had two of them. We both knew we needed to end our relationship, and we both owed it to ourselves to find the right person, and to be happy. She knows how I feel about you, and that I screwed up where you are concerned. I told her everything, and she called me an idiot, then she gave me the best piece of advice I have ever gotten. She told me that I needed to learn how to just let myself be loved by someone, and that I needed to learn how to love myself first. You're right, we need to work on getting our friendship back on track first, and work on ourselves. If that is as far as it goes, then that is all it is meant to be. I am more than willing to work on our friendship. I hope, though, that we can find our someday, and be together."

"I think that is the most I ever heard you say."

"I'm not done either," he said with a small smirk, "I need to apologize for the things I have said in the past, and for making you feel like the other woman. That was never my intention. You brought light into my world, a light that I thought I had lost a long time ago. You've done so much for me, and yes I have helped you out as well, but you saved me from myself. Thank you."

He reached over and covered her hand with his and gave it a gentle squeeze. She wiped away the tears falling down her face with her other hand. This was cathartic for her, all the emotions were so close to the surface that she was becoming overwhelmed.

"Thank you. I'm sorry too. I am sure I hurt you by going back to Joe as well. I want you to know that I'll be staying here until I finish my degree, I may never come back to live in Trenton. I'll come back to visit, but it just isn't home to me, and no matter what I do, I will always be the bumbling bounty hunter there. I don't want to be that person any longer. I'm doing what I need to do for me, and I need to do that before I can be in any kind of relationship. I think we both do."

Ranger sat back and thought about what she was saying, and knew that she was absolutely right. Over the years, they had hurt each other, and now they needed to find themselves before they could think about a relationship with anyone.

"You're right, we need to work on ourselves first. I hope, in the meantime, we can work on being friends and regaining the trust between us."

"We can, Ranger. It's going to take time, but I think we can."

They sat there and finished their breakfast, when Stephanie looked at him, with mischief in her eyes and asked,

"So, do you want to tell me about the dumpster in India?"

He choked on the sip of coffee he had in his mouth, and she laughed.

"Who told you about that?!"

"Jason."

"Dead man, he is a walking dead man," he muttered.

"Tell me."

"We had intel that a man we were looking for was in Mumbai. We were in an alley trying to get info from our informant. The guy we were after appeared, saw us and took off. I followed him, and as he ran through an open archway, I saw a short cut over a low wall, I made the jump. Turns out there was a dumpster on the other side of the wall, and it was full. I stunk for weeks."

Stephanie laughed harder than she ever had, trying to picture Ranger covered in garbage. Ranger soon joined in.

"That is priceless!"

Soon they were on their way back to the house, and as they were getting out of the car, Tank walked out. He could see the lighter steps of his friends, and it made him feel better. Hopefully, they would work things out, and they would get their acts together. They needed each other.

A/N Thank you Maggie! 《Hugs》


	12. Chapter 12

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

The rating is changing with this chapter, due to talk of abuse, and violence.

The Price to be Paid

Ranger was staying with Steph until Monday morning. Tank would be driving him to Rangeman Atlanta, where he would stay until Friday evening. He would be back to see her again, before he and Tank left for Trenton on Saturday morning. They had dinner planned with Jason Sunday night, but tonight was a night for them. They were going to just get to know each other, and rebuild their friendship. They were just going to hang around the house.

Ranger offered to help Steph with the assignment she was working on for one of her classes. She had been working on it for over a week, and it was due on Monday. She needed to use a person, either real or fictional, and write a detailed profile concerning said person. She had decided to use her mother as her model; that woman had some serious psychiatric issues.

He was looking over her paper, and was throughly impressed. She nailed her Mom as a narcissist, and not just any narcissist, but a Fanatic narcissist. The woman was self-centered and delusional about all that was happening around her. She had the potential to cause major damage to those around her, and the case of her daughter, she had.

Helen Plum was also self-medicating with alcohol. That is a dangerous combination. Stephanie had seen so much with her growing up, that it was hard to look at her as a potential criminal, but this was what she had to do. She came to the conclusion that Helen had the potential to harm those around her, and began to wonder if Helen harmed herself. It would make sense for her to do so.

"Steph, I know she has always put you, and those around you, down in order to make herself feel like a better person, but what is the probability of her physically harming herself or others?" Ranger asked.

"You know, I think she may be capable of both. She mentally and emotionally abused me all of my life. It's not much further for it to be physical. I think I should call my Dad and Grandma. They should be able to fill in the blanks."

She picked up her phone and called her Grandma.

"Hey, Baby Granddaughter! What can I do for ya?" Grandma Mazur asked her.

"Grandma, do you know if Mom has ever hurt herself or someone else physically, on purpose? "

Grandma sucked in a deep breath, and Stephanie knew that this was not going to be good.

"Stephanie, do you remember when you were little and you tried to fly off the garage roof?"

"Yes, why?"

"Honey, I'm not sure how much you blocked out about that day, but your fall from the roof was not what caused your broken arm. It had only been bruised until your Mom came outside and saw me with you. She started yelling, and grabbed your hand and arm, then twisted it in opposite directions, I heard it snap. You screamed, and passed out. We took you to the hospital and she told me that if I ever told anyone, she would do worse to both of us. She scared me that day."

"Why didn't you tell me this before? Are you safe Grandma? Are you all moved into my old apartment? I'll have Ranger send someone over to install an alarm."

Ranger, sensing the urgency in her tone, was immediately on the phone setting it all up with Lester and Hector.

"Grandma, you need to tell Dad. She needs help before it escalates. What if she hurts one of the girls since I'm no longer there for her to direct her anger at? We need to protect them."

The panic was rising in her voice. Her Mother was not a stable person, and her leaving Trenton may push her over the edge, and cause her to harm someone else. She needed to make sure that her family was safe from her mother.

She hung up with her Grandma and began pacing the large room. She was too far away to do anything in person, but she would do everything she could from there.

Ranger stood up and walked over to her. He pulled her into his arms, trying to offer any support he could. She needed him to be her friend, and he was determined to help her in any way he could.

Tank came in at that point and raised an eyebrow in question. Ranger just shook his head to indicate that they would explain as soon as they could.

Her phone rang, and she put it on speaker.

"Hello," she answered.

"Pumpkin, I just spoke with Edna. Honey, I am so sorry this happened to you. Your mom is at Val's right now. I need to see what I can do about her. I am going to make some calls, and see what I can find out," her Dad said.

Ranger spoke up, "Mr. Plum, I want to have my medic and one of my other employees come over and speak with you concerning some potential solutions that they may have. Also, if something happens, you will have protection, and Bobby can have a sedative on hand. That way she can't harm herself, or anyone else."

"Thank you. I really think we are going to need it. I need to confront her about this tonight. Now, Pumpkin, is there anything else I should know about?"

Stephanie went on to explain what happened when she was 6 years old in the Morelli garage and the punishment she received for it. Her backside was sore for weeks, and she couldn't sit down comfortably for the first two days. She had been keeping that in for most of her life. It was one of the reasons why she didn't think she should ever be a mother, herself. The example she had was not a good one, and she was afraid that she would behave just like her mother.

By the time they were done talking, she was a crying mess. She went outside to gather herself.

Ranger gave her a few minutes before he followed her.

"Babe, we will make sure your family is safe," he told her, as he rubbed her arms.

"I know that, it's just having to tell my Dad made me a little upset. I just need to pull myself together for a moment, while we wait on news from Trenton. Thank you for your help with all of this."

"Anything I can do to help you, I will. You mean a lot to me and if I can ease your burdens in any way, I want to do that for you."

They stood there in comfortable silence, waiting for any news.

Tank watched his friends out on the deck. He could see the emotions so close to the surface on both of their faces. This was so hard to watch, knowing what she had been through, knowing that they belonged to each other and not being able to do more to help them get to where they belonged.

Eventually, they all made their way into the kitchen, and nibbled on some sandwiches. It was getting close to 8 pm, and they still hadn't heard anything. Twenty minutes later, the phone rang, and Stephanie answered it.

"Bobby? Is everything okay?" she asked.

"It's a good thing we were here. Your mom completely lost it when she was confronted. She said some very nasty things about how you ruined everything, then tried to attack your Dad with a knife from the kitchen. We were able to sedate her and wait for the police and ambulance. We are currently at St. Francis, waiting for a psych eval, and from there we should be able to move her to the state hospital. Everyone is safe and sound. You did good by calling your Grandma and asking for information. That headed off something that could have been worse. You did good, Bomber."

They talked for a little while longer, but the doctor showed up, and Bobby had to speak with him.

Ranger picked her up and carried her to her room. She was on the verge of collapse, she'd had enough for today.

Downstairs, Jason showed up to speak with Tank. Tank gave him the run down of all that had happened today. You could feel the anger coming off of him. He hadn't been called Tiger for nothing and right now the tiger smelled blood. Tank needed to head him off before he did something he would regret.

A/N Thank You Maggie!


	13. Chapter 13

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

This is a short chapter. I had hit a nasty wall, but Maggie and Amanda talked me through the wall. Thank you Ladies!

The Price to be Paid

Once Ranger had Stephanie settled and in bed asleep, he made his way back downstairs. He needed to talk to Tank and Jason. They had to come up with a way to support her once they had to head back to Trenton.

We he got there he found Tank and a furious looking Jason. This could get ugly fast. He could see that the Tiger had come to the surface. Jason wanted someone's head and he wanted it now.

Ranger knew he needed to prevent him from doing something stupid. He quickly made his way over to Jason and got into his face.

"Stand down soldier!" Ranger barked out, "We need to have cool head on our shoulders. This mission will be to ensure the safety and emotional well being of Stephanie, and her family. Our number one priority will be Stephanie. Now, we will sit down and strategically plan how to support her. I want to watch over her in case she needs me tonight."

Jason took a steadying breath and refocused his energies into this new mission. Ranger could see the tiger being put back into his cage. Most people never see this side of any of them, and now was not the time to start.

Ranger watched as so many emotions ran across Jason's face. He slowly sat down in a nearby armchair as he waited for the storm to die down.

"Ranger, we can't leave her here alone. She is going to need someone nearby to help her focus on getting through her day to day routine until she is able to stand on her own. We should also contact Pathways and see if we can help her set up a counselor to come out to the house. I think it may help her more to have someone come here, at least to start. Do you think she would be willing to talk to someone?" Tank asked him.

"I don't know, I'll talk to her tomorrow. We need to approach this gently. She's not in a good place right now. We can't have her going off into denial land over this. I'm going to make a few calls. Then maybe we can all come up with a plan to offer her our help and support."

Jason spoke up, "I will do what I can for her here. I think that she needs to stay on target with the goals she is working towards, but she will also need to face her past and anything she may have repressed. I haven't known her very long, but through all of the times you two have talked about her I feel like I've known her my entire life. I don't know how she will react to any of this though. Do you think that she may want to at least take some time to go to Trenton to see her family?"

"When it comes to Steph, you can never be to sure what she is going to want. I think that we all need to sit down in the morning and talk with her, so she can decide how she wants to handle this. We need to present her with all of her options, and see where she wants to go with them. We will have better intel from Bobby at that point as well," Ranger told them.

They called it a night. Ranger went up to Stephanie's room and sat in a chair near the bed. He had an overwhelming need to watch over her tonight. There was so much that she had to process, that he knew from his own experiences there would be nightmares as the memories came back to haunt her.

He had just began to doze lightly whe he heard a small whimper and realized that it was Stephanie making the sound. He stood up and went over to the bed. He gathered her up into his embrace and whispered soothing nonsensical words into her ears. They weren't all complete nonsense, because he slipped into Spanish and began to tell her about the moment he fell in love with her. Someday, he hoped he could tell her while she was awake and in English, while looking into each others eyes, so she would know each word was true.

They weren't ready for that, and in the end they may never be. He could only pray that the path they were on would lead them to their someday. He wasn't sure what would happen if it didn't. He felt a little tug of regret around his heart as he realized that along their journeys of self discovery, they may not find their way back to each other.

She calmed down in his arms and slowly woke up from the nightmare that had a death grip upon her mind. She found herself wrapped in Rangers arms, and panicked for one moment before relaxing. She needed this, in that precise moment. She needed her friend and that is what he was doing, being her friend.

"Thank you," she said softly.

He almost replied with his normal response of 'no price' to her, but instead simply said, "You're welcome."

A/N Thank you Maggie! That wall was a little ugly.


	14. Chapter 14

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

The Price to be Paid

When Stephanie woke up early the next morning, Ranger was there holding her. She knew that she must have had a restless night. He was awake but continued to hold her, he didn't want to let her go.

Today was going to be draining on all of them, and she was scared. She knew that she couldn't slip back into denial land. She hoped the guys could help her. She needed to find someone to help her heal, otherwise she would become a shell of herself.

Ranger sat up and looked at her before he started to talk.

"You were having nightmares, so I got in bed to hold you. You calmed down and slept through the rest of the night. Once you're ready, we can go down for breakfast."

She got up slowly from the bed, not really wanting to end this moment.

"Thank you."

"Anytime, Babe."

She went into the bathroom to get ready for the day. She knew what she had to do at this point, it was just a matter of asking for help.

He got up, walked over to his room and grabbed a quick shower. He had spent the night holding her, and his body had responded the way it always had when he held her. He needed to do something about it, otherwise she may run in the opposite direction. Once he was done and dressed for the day, he went back over to Stephanie's room.

She was just pulling on her shirt when Ranger knocked on her door and came in. She put her feet into a pair of flip flops and held out her hand to him. He smiled and took it.

They made their way to the kitchen, where Tank and Jason were already waiting for them. Tank saw their clasped hands, and while he kept his face blank, internally he was doing his version of the happy dance. She was learning that she could depend on Ranger, and trust him again. Tank sent up a small prayer of thanks, that this was heading in the right direction. He could only hope that the conversation they were about to have didn't change that.

Jason had already started a fresh pot of coffee and Tank had a big Sunday breakfast started. He was making eggs, bacon, and Irish cream flavored french toast. The temples were taking a break today; Steph would need comfort food.

After a round of "Good Mornings," they all began setting up for breakfast. Steph looked a little surprised at what was being made, but didn't question it. Once everything was plated up, and the syrup and whipped cream made its way to the table, they all settled in for the meal. This meal guaranteed to be delicious and Steph didn't disappoint; all of her sound effects came out to play.

After they'd enjoyed the delicious food and had cleaned up, they each got another cup of coffee and made their way into the den. They needed to be somewhere comfortable for this conversation.

"I want to thank all three of you for your help," Steph began. "After yesterday's revelations, though, I came to the conclusion that I need a bit more help." She took a deep breath. "Would any of you be able to help set me up with a therapist? I need to move forward with my life, and not live in my pasrt, or in denial land any longer."

They sat back, momentarily stunned. Ranger shook his head and replied, "That was what we wanted to talk with you about this morning. You have a few options in this area. Tank and Jason already have a list together for you. We want to help you in any waywe can. You were dealt a nasty blow yesterday, and we want you to know that we will support any decision you make."

"Maybe after breakfast we can look at that list, then I need to finish my assignment. I have to keep moving forward.

"I do want to talk to my Dad today. I know that eventually I will need to go to Trenton and speak with my entire family. I will have to face that, and find a way to help my family through this. She may have done all the things she has done, but she is still my mother."

"Stephanie, what are your plans are from here? Are you going to stay here and finish school? We want to help you however we can," Tank spoke up.

"I would like to stay here. If that changes, I will let you all know."

They cleared up from breakfast, and Steph went outside, hoping to just relax before she called her Dad. Something caught her eye as she turned and she noticed Jason. He seemed upset; he had barely said two words to her. She couldn't understand what had him so mad. She really didn't know him, but she wanted to check on him anyway.

"Jason, are you okay? What's wrong? I'm sorry if I made you mad. That wasn't my intention."

"No, Steph, I'm not mad **at** you, I'm mad **for** you. I'm mad for me, and for every other child that has been treated like us. Why can't parents just love their kids? I know that there are kids who have had it worse than we have, but damn it, we all deserve to have our parents just love us."

"Jason, it's not your fault. You know that, right? For awhile that became my motto in life, but in this case it's true.

You know, maybe you would benefit from therapy, too. I mean it can't hurt, right? It could help us both become stronger people and handle our pasts in a better way. Think about it."

Ranger joined them on the deck. Steph walked over to him and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"I need to call my Dad, then Bobby. I'll be upstairs. If you'll come up in about an hour, I have the feeling I'm going to need you there."

"I'll be up in an hour, Babe," he replied.

She made her way up to her room. She needed to pull her thoughts together before she spoke with her Dad. She dialed her childhood phone number, and he answered on the first ring.

"Pumpkin?" he sounded so defeated.

"Hey Daddy, how are you doing today?" she asked him.

"I've been better. How are you holding up?"

"I'm not going to lie and tell you that I'm okay, but I do know that I will be. Have you talked to Val?"

"I did, and she is taking it very hard. The one I am most worried about, besides you, is Mary Alice. Apparently, your Mom was pretty hard on her last night. She told me that Helen said that she would end up just like you, 'a worthless, good for nothing, piece of crap', if she didn't start behaving like Angie.

Albert said that she has been in almost constant tears, and hasn't acted like a horsesince the moment Helen told her that. I hate to think of the damage she has done to you and MA. I am so sorry, Pumpkin. I was so damn blind to how she was treating you for so long. I should have seen it the last time I took you fishing with me."

"What do you mean, Daddy?(2sp) I don't remember ever going fishing with you." Steph was completely confused by this.

"Oh,Stephanie, from the time you were old enough to hold a rod until you were almost eight,we would go fishing after Mass every Sunday, then to Pino's for a slice of pizza.

"One time, you slipped in the mud and were covered head to toe. I was going to take you straight home, but you begged me to make our normal stop for pizza. We got home and she'd heard about us still making our stop. She was waiting on the porch for us and her face was bright red. She grabbed your arm and dragged you into the bathroom. I was still in the military at that time and my CO called me to come in for a briefing. I wasn't able to get back for five days, and by the time I did, she told me that I was not allowed to take you out fishing with me any longer, because you would be taking dance classes on Sunday from then on.

"When I saw you and tried to give you a hug, as soon as you saw me, you became very quiet and ran to your room. I should've known something was very wrong. You had been a big Daddy's girl up to that point. You didn't even climb in my lap for cuddles with me anymore after that."

"Oh God! Daddy, I remember now. She beat my butt with one of your belts and told me that if I didn't do everything thing she said, I would never see you again.

"She then told me that if I ever told anyone, she would kill me. She is a monster! Who would do that to a child? I know Grandma and Grandpa Mazur would never have treated her in this manner. I just don't understand it."

She began to sob loudly and her Dad tried to calm her down over the phone. Memories were flooding back to her, and she was becoming overwhelmed.

Ranger heard her cries and ran in, pulling her into his arms. He took the phone from her hand.

"Speak," he barked into the phone. He wanted a piece of whoever was on the other end. No one hurts her and gets away with it.

"Ranger, it's Frank. What's going on? Where is Stephanie? Is she alright?"

Ranger could hear the panic in Frank Plum's voice and instantly knew what was wrong. She was remembering everything she had worked to forget.

"I've got her Frank. I'm going to try and calm her down. I'll have her call you later so you don't worry." He pushed the button on her phone, effectively ending the call.

He dropped the phone, then sat down on her bed, pulled her into his arms, and let her work through her tears.

He kissed the top of her head and whispered in her ear. She finally began to calm down until she was just jeft with the hiccups. She curled into him closer and sighed.

Her tears eventually gave way to an exhausted sleep. He laid her down in her bed and covered her with a light blanket.

Ranger sat with her, wishing he could take away pain. He ran one of his large hands down his face and rose. He had to go talk to Tank and Jason.

"Kitchen, **now**," he ordered both of them.

Tank raised an eyebrow but complied. Jason followed. They were both worried about what was going on. They settled themselves at the breakfast bar.

"Steph was just on the phone with her Dad. I think she may have remembered more episodes with her mom. I found her crying so hard that she couldn't speak. I told Frank that she would call him back once she calmed down. I am going to make arrangements for me to be able to work from here until further notice. She is going to need all the support she can get. I believe she may have a form of PTSD. First thing tomorrow, Jason I want you to start calling around and find a therapist to come here to the house. Tank, I want you to get Lester here on the next flight. She is going to need him as well."

Tank got up and went to make some calls to get Lester there as quickly as possible. That left Jason there with Ranger.

"While I look for someone to help her, I am going to find someone for me, too. It's time I dealt with my past as well," Jason informed him.

Ranger only nodded. He got up from the bar and made his way back up to Stephanie. She was just beginning to stir as he walked in.

"Babe, you awake?"

"Yeah, I'm up."

"You ready to tell me what happened?"

She shook her head no and got up to go to the bathroom to freshen up. When she came back out she sat on the bed and blew out a sigh.

"I'm ready now," she told him. "Dad and I were talking about Mom and he mentioned how he use to take me fishing every Sunday. He told me that we stopped going because she put a stop to it. The memories of everything she did and said to me came flooding back.

He was called away by the army for a briefing when we got back that day. I had fallen in the mud and she got mad. She beat me with Daddy's belt, then threatened to kill me. That happened every time I disappointed her, which was often.

I am just grateful I called Grandma when I did. Apparently she went after MA verbally. MA didn't take it very well and is having a rough time."

Steph paused and took a deep breath before continuing.

"I would like to call Val and Bobby and see if we can get her some help, heck our whole family needs help."

"We'll call them in a little bit, okay? I want to talk to you about a few things first."

She eyed him warily, "I'm not going back to Trenton right now. I don't have a break from classes until next month."

"That's not it, but that's good to know. I would like to stay here and help you. I can make this my base of operations for now. Also, Lester is on his way here to hang out with you this week. If I've overstepped any boundaries, I'm sorry."

"Thank you."

He looked at her and grinned. He kissed her curls and let her up. They made their way downstairs to face the next challenge for the day head on.

A/N Thank you Maggie!

I am sorry I took longer with this chapter than I have been. You see, I seem to be having an affair with the hospital, at least that's what it feels like. I am doing better, just exhausted. If you're still with me, Thank you for joining me on this ride.

Lynda


	15. Chapter 15

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

The Price to be Paid

Ranger placed his hand at the small of her back, guiding her into the living room. Tank and Jason were waiting on them. They wanted to make sure she was going to be alright.

Tank walked over and pulled her into his embrace. He just needed her to know that he was there for her.

"You okay, Little Girl?"

"I will be in time," she said quietly.

He nodded and let Jason pull her from him. Jason looked her over from head to toe, just to see for himself that she was physically alright. He knew that mentally, she would need time to heal, just like him.

She pulled away from him and sat down on the couch next to Ranger.

"I need to call Val, then Bobby. I want to see if we can set something up for all of them as well. Our entire family needs help so that we can heal from this. I would like it if you three could stay here with me while I do this. I need all the strength I can get."

They all agreed to stay. She took a deep breath and dialed Val's number. She wasn't sure how Val was going to react to all of this, it could go either way.

"Kloughn residence, " Val answered.

"Val? It's Steph."

"Are you okay? Where are you? I am so sorry this happened to you and MA. Do you need me to come get you?" Val was speaking so quickly and with so much concern that Steph could barely understand her.

"I'm safe, Val. That's one of the reasons I was calling. How's MA?"

"Oh, Steph! She's not herself anymore. I never thought I would say this, but I miss her acting like a horse. This isn't her and I don't know what to do."

"If I can set up some kind of counseling for all of you, would you be willing to go? I really think we all need it."

"Anything to get my girl back. I can't stand to see her like this, it's tearing us all apart to see her so broken."

"I'm going to make a phone call and see what I can set up, then I'll call you back. Please tell the girls that I love them."

"I will. Thank you, Stephanie."

They said their goodbyes and hung up. She took a few moments before she called Bobby. Ranger put his arm around her shoulder and she leaned into him seeking out his strength. She was worried about her niece, it weighed heavy on her mind.

"She's going to be okay Steph, and so will you. We'll help you all through this," Ranger told her.

"I know, and I can't tell you what that means to me."

She called Bobby and put the phone on speaker so that everyone could be part of this conversation.

"Yo!" Bobby answered.

"Hey, Bobby. I just spoke with Val and my Dad. What kind of help can we get for all of them in Trenton? I think MA needs it ASAP. Val is really worried about her, and so am I."

"I have a few that have been vetted for the adults, and for family therapy. I'm still looking for a pediatric therapist. Although, I did find an equine therapy that I think will help her. I can contact them in the morning if you want me to."

"Why equine?" Tank asked.

"Children who have been through a traumatic event tend to respond well to animals being used in their therapy. She loves horses so much, that I feel that this may reach her easier. She'll get to ride and care for a horse while talking everything over with a therapist."

"Please find out what you can, Bobby. I think you're right, the horses would make it easier for her."

"Alright, Bomber, I'll set it up. Also, your Dad has asked the courts to have a full mental evaluation on your mom. She will most likely continue to stay in the mental health facility while that is conducted. I think that would be best for her at this time as well. If anything else comes up I will contact you immediately. "

"Thank you, Bobby."

"You're welcome, Steph."

They said their goodbyes and hung up. Ranger pulled her into a hug and whispered, "Proud of you, Babe."

She knew that she needed to call her Dad back, even if only to let him know that she was okay. She began to pull away from Ranger and motioned him to follow her out to the deck. She hadn't noticed that Tank had left.

"Will you stay with me while I call my Dad back?"

"Of course. "

They sat together on a nearby bench, with their knees touching, he put an arm around her waist, and she leaned into him. She pulled out her phone and called her Dad.

"Hey, Daddy."

"Are you alright, Pumpkin?"

"I'm going to be okay. I'm sorry for breaking down while I was on the phone with you earlier. I didn't mean to worry you. I just wanted to call and let you know that I'll be alright."

"I'm glad you called. You have nothing to be sorry for, I'm your Dad and I'll always worry about you."

"I love you, Daddy."

"I love you too, Pumpkin. I'm going to let you go and do whatever you need to do. Can you call me tomorrow night and let me know how you're doing?"

"I will. Bye, Daddy."

"Bye."

She hung up the phone and stood up. She held out her hand to Ranger and he took it in his large, warm hand, and stood as well. Then she pulled him over to the Koi pond in the corner of the back yard. The magnolia trees were blooming and sending their sweet perfume into the air. He could feel her beginning to relax as she drew in a deep breath.

"Ranger, I don't know how to even begin to thank you for everything you've done for me over the years. You've always managed to be there when I needed someone the most. I never realized how much you have really done for me.

"You always told men"no price", but when I left Trenton, I **had** been paying a price. My heart was cracking, and I couldn't let it break. I am now understanding that you've been paying that same price, too. You have always been a man of action and you showed me you cared in the only way you could. I'm sorry I never recognized it before." Steph told him.

"You have always been important to me, Stephanie. That day we met in the diner, I knew you were special. You didn't treat me with the fear that was clearly written on your face. No, you stood up for yourself with a determination so fierce that you blew me away. I'm going to be perfectly honest with you here, you stole my heart that day. Babe, I have some of my own issues to work on, things I never wanted to think about again, but that have kept me from allowing others in, from trusting others. Your leaving opened my eyes to what I was doing. I think that once we each get ourselves together, then we have a good chance for a future with each other. I hope that it's as more than friends."

"Let's just take this one day at a time." She squeezed his hand in reassurance. Just as she was getting ready to say something else, she was picked up from behind.

She let out a squeal as she was hauled up into a hard, black clad chest. She looked up and laughed, there was Lester with a silly grin on his face.

"So, Beautiful, how many other stories has Jason been telling you?"

"A few that you probably wanted to forget, but I will save for future use."

He laughed at that and carried her inside with a chuckling Ranger behind them.

Tank had brought back dinner with them, and they all gathered at the table to eat. Lester had them all laughing.

Jason had another story up his sleeve about the guys and began telling it.

"We were all at Ft. Benning for the first week of Ranger training. All of the newbies are given a special surprise on completion of their first week. Those who are going to wash out usually do in that first few days, so that's why they wait until then.

"Anyway, it was about 3 am and one of the captains came in with his bullhorn and a water hose. He was yelling that we had to get up and move. As we were running out in our skivvies, he turned the hose full of cold water on us. We got outside and we all noticed that there was a group of people standing around with cameras. They started taking pictures just as someone dumped bags of flour and raw eggs on us."

They were laughing so hard by the time he was done telling us the story that they had a hard time catching their breath, and Steph was clutching her sides. She really needed to have her day end this way, with friends and laughter.

A/N Thank you Maggie! These last two chapters have become so much more than I could have hoped for with all of your help! You are absolutely amazing!


	16. Chapter 16

A/N not mine, I own nothing.

The Price to be Paid

Monday morning, Ranger needed to go to his office in Atlanta. Originally, he had planned on returning to Commerce Friday, but after this past weekend, he would be returning Tuesday evening. He was feeling guilty leaving, but knew she had classes today and Lester would be there to keep her company.

When he got to his office, there were half a dozen messages waiting for him. Two of them were from his mother. He knew he should call her back, but he needed to take some time to regroup before he did that. This past weekend had taken a toll on both of them.

He sat down with a cup of coffee in his hand and called his mom.

"Carlos!" Maria exclaimed. "What is going on? Lester called to tell us that you would be in Georgia for awhile, but wouldn't tell me anything else. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine Mama. I just need to be down here for a while. Stephanie is having a hard time and I want to be nearby to help her."

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Not right now, Mama. She's remembering some things from her childhood and, well Mama, it's not anything pleasant. She didn't have a good mama like you."

"Carlos, what do you mean?"

"Helen Plum was cruel to her youngest child. Stephanie is starting to realize just how bad things were for her growing up," he paused and took a cleansing breath. "Mrs. Plum hurt her in almost every way possible and continues to do so now.

"I'm going to stay here and make sure she knows how loved she really is. Growing up the way she did, I don't understand how she became the loving, caring person she is today.

"Mama, there is no one out there even close to being like her. She has such a beautiful light about her. Her own mother tried to put out that light, and so many others did too. I am ashamed to say it, but I am just as guilty. I may not have physically hurt her, but I did make her feel like something she never wanted to be."

"Carlitos, you stay. Be her friend, show her that she is worth everything to you. Don't try and push her away any longer. It will be alright in the end.

"If there is anything I can do from here, you call me."

"I will. Bye, Mama...and thanks."

"Goodbye, m'hijo, I love you."

"Love you too."

With that, he hung up the phone. He stood, then walked over to the window and began to think about everything that Stephanie has been through. He still couldn't comprehend how so many people in her life failed her. **He** had failed her.

He spent the rest of the day getting everything ready so that he could work from Tank's house until further notice.

His phone rang around 8 pm; he didn't even bother to look at the caller ID, he knew it was her calling.

"Hey, Babe."

"Hey, Ranger. How are things going in the office?" she asked.

"Good, I should be back around 7 tomorrow. Would you like to get dinner when I get there?"

"That sounds good. I have a list of things that I want to go over with you, that is, if you don't mind."

"That's fine."

"I`ll see you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow, Babe."

She pressed the end button on her phone and let out a deep sigh. She knew that Tuesday would be a very long day.

She looked at the list she had written and knew that it could either make or break her friendship with Ranger. She only hoped that it would make them stronger. The list was what she wanted in life, and from a relationship with anyone.

_1 To finish school; this was her biggest goal_

_2. Therapy_

_3. Complete honesty from friends and/or partner_

_4. Any future relationship must be completely monogamous_

_5. Surround myself with people who will support me, put the ones who can't in the a__cquaintance __aspect of my life_

As she reread her list, Lester popped his head into her room.

"Beautiful? Do you want to sit out back with me? I'd like the chance to talk with you."

She nodded her head and followed him downstairs. They both sat down in chairs near the fire pit that had a small but welcoming fire going in it. They sat in silence for a few minutes before Lester began to talk.

"Steph, you know, I honestly believe that you are the most wonderful person in this world. After all you've been through in your life, you still treat us with more respect than most of our families do.

"Did you know that, in my family, only Carlos, his parents and siblings are the only ones who will talk to either of us? Abuela Rosa, was our biggest supporter until she passed away. I can safely say that knowing you has been the greatest gift in my life. You give me hope that there are more wonderful people out there like you, and that maybe I will be lucky enough to meet them. You, Stephanie Plum, make this world a better place, just by being you."

She looked over at him and saw the sincerity in his eyes.

"No, Les, you and all the guys at Rangeman do that. I just try to be your friend."

"That is exactly why we all love you so much. You don't care about how much we have, or what we can do for you. You don't see us as thugs, murderers, or drug dealers. You see us for who we are. There is so much most of us have done in the past, but you don't care about that. You only care about who we are today." He paused for a moment,"Do you know why I call you Beautiful?"

"I figured it was probably because you like how I look."

"That's only a small part of it. I call you Beautiful, because every aspect of you is beautiful. You have a kind and loving soul, no matter how much crap is thrown at you. You are stonger than the rest of us and you don't even realize it. We may have physical strength, but you hold all the power just by being you."

She sat ther taking in everything he had just said. Did they really see her that way? Could she really be that person?

As the darkness of the Georgia night began to take hold, she decided that it was time to be the person they saw her as.

A/N so real life has been kicking me in the butt again. Updates will be posted as I can, but I cannot promise that it will be quickly. It seems my affair with the hospital and doctors is becoming more and more frequent.

On a happy note...A GREAT BIG THANK YOU TO MAGGIE! You are awesome! Sending you the biggest hug I can! Hugs to Margaret, Amanda, and Annie as well. You three are so great to talk to!


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